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macro-rates-monitor

anthropics/financial-services

Build macroeconomic and rates dashboards combining macro indicators, yield curves, inflation breakevens, and swap rates.

What is macro-rates-monitor?

Synthesizes macroeconomic data, yield curves, inflation breakevens, and swap rates into comprehensive dashboards for macro analysis. Use when monitoring economic cycles, analyzing yield curve shape, decomposing real versus nominal rates, assessing policy expectations, or evaluating financial conditions.

  • Pull macro indicators (GDP, CPI, PCE, unemployment, PMI) via qa_macroeconomic tool
  • Retrieve government and swap yield curves and compute curve slopes (2s10s, 3M-10Y)
  • Decompose real rates by subtracting inflation breakevens from nominal yields
  • Calculate swap spreads to assess financial conditions
  • Provide historical yield context and trend analysis
  • Synthesize cycle position, policy outlook, and financial conditions into a coherent narrative

How to install macro-rates-monitor

npx skills add https://github.com/anthropics/financial-services --skill macro-rates-monitor
Prerequisites
  • Access to MCP tools: qa_macroeconomic, interest_rate_curve, inflation_curve, ir_swap, and tscc_historical_pricing_summaries
Claude Code
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Windsurf
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How to use macro-rates-monitor

  1. 1.Call qa_macroeconomic with wildcard patterns (e.g., US*GDP*, US*CPI*) to retrieve latest macro indicators for your target country
  2. 2.Call interest_rate_curve (list then calculate) to extract government yields at standard tenors (3M, 2Y, 5Y, 10Y, 30Y)
  3. 3.Compute yield curve slopes: 2s10s (2Y yield minus 10Y yield) and 3M-10Y slope; classify curve shape as normal, flat, inverted, or humped
  4. 4.Call inflation_curve (search then calculate) to retrieve inflation breakevens at key tenors
  5. 5.Calculate real rates at each tenor: real rate = nominal yield minus inflation breakeven; assess whether accommodative or restrictive
  6. 6.Call ir_swap (list then price) at 2Y, 5Y, and 10Y tenors to retrieve swap rates
  7. 7.Compute swap spreads: swap spread = swap rate minus government yield at each tenor; assess financial conditions
  8. 8.Call tscc_historical_pricing_summaries for benchmark yields (e.g., 10Y) to contextualize current levels

Use cases

Good for
  • Monitor economic cycle position and assess whether conditions are expanding or contracting
  • Analyze yield curve shape and slope to infer market expectations for policy rates
  • Decompose real rates to determine if monetary policy is accommodative or restrictive
  • Evaluate swap spreads as a gauge of financial stress or stability
  • Track inflation breakevens to assess market inflation expectations versus central bank targets
Who it's for
  • Macro strategists and fixed-income analysts
  • Portfolio managers monitoring economic and rates conditions
  • Central bank watchers and policy analysts
  • Financial advisors assessing macroeconomic regime shifts

macro-rates-monitor FAQ

What macro indicators should I prioritize?

Start with GDP growth, core inflation (CPI or PCE), unemployment rate, and PMI manufacturing. These four indicators cover cycle position, inflation regime, labor market slack, and forward momentum. Adjust by country: use HICP for Eurozone, add policy rate expectations.

How do I interpret yield curve slope?

A steep curve (2s10s > 100bp) signals growth expectations and accommodative policy. A flat or inverted curve (2s10s < 0bp) suggests policy tightening, recession risk, or terminal rate uncertainty. Use 3M-10Y slope for additional forward-looking signal.

What do real rates tell me about policy stance?

Real rates = nominal yields minus inflation breakevens. Negative or low real rates are accommodative; high real rates are restrictive. Compare real rates to neutral rate estimates to assess policy tightness relative to economic slack.

When should I monitor swap spreads?

Swap spreads widen during financial stress and narrow during calm periods. Elevated spreads (>50bp) signal credit or liquidity concerns. Use as a gauge of financial conditions alongside other indicators.

How do I use historical yield context?

Compare current yields to 1Y, 5Y, and 10Y historical ranges. Yields near historical lows suggest low terminal rate expectations; yields near highs suggest tightening or inflation concerns. Use to contextualize valuation and policy outlook.

Full instructions (SKILL.md)

Source of truth, from anthropics/financial-services.


name: macro-rates-monitor description: Build macroeconomic and rates dashboards combining macro indicators, yield curves, inflation breakevens, and swap rates. Use when monitoring macro conditions, analyzing yield curve shape, decomposing real vs nominal rates, assessing policy rate expectations, or evaluating financial conditions.

Macroeconomic and Rates Monitor

You are an expert macro strategist and rates analyst. Combine macroeconomic data, yield curves, inflation breakevens, and swap rates from MCP tools into comprehensive dashboards. Focus on routing tool outputs into a coherent macro narrative — let the tools provide the data, you synthesize cycle position, policy outlook, and financial conditions.

Core Principles

Macro analysis synthesizes multiple indicators into a narrative. Always assess: (1) where are we in the economic cycle (GDP, employment, PMI), (2) what is the central bank doing (policy rate, curve shape), (3) what does the bond market signal (curve slope, real rates), (4) are financial conditions tightening or easing (swap spreads, real rates). Start broad, drill down.

Available MCP Tools

  • qa_macroeconomic — Macro data series: GDP, CPI, PCE, unemployment, payrolls, PMI, retail sales. Multiple countries and frequencies. Search by mnemonic pattern or description.
  • interest_rate_curve — Government yield curves and swap curves. Two-phase: list then calculate. Use for curve shape and slope analysis.
  • inflation_curve — Inflation breakeven curves and real yields. Two-phase: search then calculate. Use for real rate decomposition.
  • ir_swap — Swap rates by tenor and currency. Two-phase: list templates then price. Use to compute swap spreads.
  • tscc_historical_pricing_summaries — Historical pricing data. Use for historical yield context and trend analysis.

Tool Chaining Workflow

  1. Pull Macro Indicators: Call qa_macroeconomic for GDP, CPI/PCE, unemployment, and PMI for the target country. Retrieve latest values and recent series.
  2. Yield Curve Snapshot: Call interest_rate_curve (list then calculate) for the government curve. Extract yields at standard tenors. Compute 2s10s and 3M-10Y slopes. Classify curve shape.
  3. Inflation Decomposition: Call inflation_curve (search then calculate). Compute real rates = nominal minus breakeven at each tenor. Assess whether real rates are accommodative or restrictive.
  4. Swap Spreads: Call ir_swap (list then price) at 2Y, 5Y, 10Y. Compute swap spread = swap rate minus government yield at each tenor. Assess financial conditions.
  5. Historical Context: Call tscc_historical_pricing_summaries for the benchmark yield (e.g., 10Y). Assess where current yields sit vs recent history.
  6. Synthesize: Combine into a dashboard: cycle position, curve signals, real rate regime, financial conditions, and overall assessment.

Macro Search Patterns

When querying qa_macroeconomic, use wildcard patterns to discover mnemonics:

  • US: "US*GDP*", "US*CPI*", "US*PCE*", "US*UNEMP*"
  • Eurozone: "EZ*GDP*", "EZ*HICP*"
  • UK: "UK*GDP*", "UK*CPI*"
  • Prefer seasonally adjusted series. Monthly for most indicators; GDP is quarterly.

Output Format

Macro Summary

IndicatorCurrentPriorDirectionSignal
GDP Growth...%...%...Expansion/Contraction
Core Inflation (YoY)...%...%...Above/At/Below target
Unemployment...%...%...Tight/Balanced/Slack
PMI Manufacturing.........Expansion/Contraction

Yield Curve Snapshot

Present yields at key tenors (3M, 2Y, 5Y, 10Y, 30Y). Highlight 2s10s and 3M-10Y slopes. Note curve shape: normal / flat / inverted / humped.

Real Rate Decomposition

TenorNominalBreakevenReal RateSignal
5Y...%...%...%Accommodative/Restrictive
10Y...%...%...%Accommodative/Restrictive

Swap Spread Table

TenorSwap RateGovt YieldSwap Spread (bp)Signal
2Y.........Normal/Elevated/Stressed
5Y.........Normal/Elevated/Stressed
10Y.........Normal/Elevated/Stressed

Overall Assessment

2-3 sentences on the macro-rates regime: cycle position, policy outlook, financial conditions, and key risks.